On November 9-10, 2001,
the First World Forum of Azerbaijanis, organized by the Azerbaijani
government, was held in Baku. The event brought together Azerbaijanis
from all over the world.

Left:
Descendants
of Uzeyir Hajibeyov (statue) visited Baku for the first time
in November 2002. Clement (left) and Benjamin Bailly are grandsons
of Jeyhun Hajibeyli, brother of the great composer. They live
in Paris where Clement is a jazz percussionist.
President Heydar Aliyev challenged the Azeri Diaspora to work
together with citizens of Azerbaijan to strengthen and build
up awareness of the country and its needs and opportunities throughout
the world. Undoubtedly, the greatest benefit of the session was
the interaction, exchange and friendships that were facilitated
by such an event. For more information about the Forum, visit
http://diaspora.az. Site is in Azeri,
Russian and English. The Congress has plans to convene every
three years.

Another special guest was Clement Bailly (1951- ), grandson of
Jeyhun Hajibeyli (1891-1962) who was the brother of the well-known
Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hajibeyov (1885-1948). It was the
first time that Bailly, a musician living in Paris, had ever
traveled to Azerbaijan.

In 1918-1920, Jeyhun had served as a representative in the short-lived
Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. He was sent to Paris to help
forge international ties but when the Bolsheviks seized Baku
in 1920, he feared for his life and never returned home. He remained
in exile in France for the rest of his life where his children,
grandchildren and great grandchildren have grown up. While in
exile, Jeyhun continued his path as a political activist, trying
to expose the reality of the conditions that Azerbaijanis lived
under during the Soviet regime.

Clement is currently working on a biography about his grandfather
Jeyhun who wrote many articles and books including "The
Dialect and Folklore of Karabakh" (Imprimerie Nationale:
Paris, 1933, 137 pages in French) which may be accessed at HAJIBEYOV.com. Click on Research.